A Beginner's Guide to Subscription Offers
A Beginner's Guide to Subscription Offers
Summary
An offer is the container for everything you sell on a product page: the recurring choices, the bundle deals, or both. Inside an offer sit bars, and each bar is one choice the customer can pick.
This guide covers both halves. The first part explains what an offer is, how to create one, and how to choose which products it applies to. The second part walks through every setting on a subscription bar.
When to Use This Guide
Use this guide if you are just getting started, or if you are looking up what a particular setting on a subscription bar does.
Table of Contents
Offers
- What is an offer?
- Offer types
- How to create an offer
- Assigning products to an offer
- Setting the default option
- Widget preview
- Publishing
Subscription bars
- What is a subscription bar?
- Creating a subscription bar
- Billing Mode: Pay Per Order vs Prepaid
- Discounts
- Contract Duration
- Subscription Renewal Dates
- Fixed quantity bundle
- Starter product, then refills
- Eligible Customers
- Advanced bar settings
- The one-time purchase row
Reference
What is an offer?
An offer defines the rules of what customers can buy on a product page. Each offer includes:
- Name: an internal name so you can find the offer again.
- Bars: one or more selectable choices the customer sees. A subscription bar is a recurring purchase choice (frequency, discount, terms). A bundle bar is a bundle deal (quantity break, Buy X Get Y, fixed bundle, or build-a-box). One offer can hold both.
- Products: the store products the offer applies to.
Offer types
When you create an offer, you pick its type:
- Bundle gives shoppers a better price for buying more, or for buying a set of products together. Bundles can be bought one-time or on subscription, so this is not a subscription-only offer type.
- Subscription sells a product on a recurring basis.
- Bundle + Subscription does both, so shoppers can pick a quantity or a set of variants and subscribe.
How to create an offer
- Go to the Offers page
Navigate to Super Subscriptions > Offers in your Shopify admin.
- Click Create offer
This opens the offer editor.
- Choose the offer type
Bundle, Subscription, or Bundle + Subscription (see above).
- Name the offer
- Offer name: for your own reference in the admin.
- Subscription name: the group name customers see above your subscription bars on the storefront.
- Add your bars
- For recurring choices, click Add a subscription bar and set the frequency, discount, and any advanced terms. Every setting is covered in the second half of this guide, starting at What is a subscription bar?.
- For bundle deals, click Add a bundle bar and pick its type. Every setting is covered in Bundle types.
You can add as many bars as you like and drag them to reorder. One bar (or the one-time purchase row) is the default, meaning it is pre-selected on the product page. See Setting the default option.
- Assign products (see below)
- Save, then publish when you are ready.
Assigning products to an offer
Choose which products the offer applies to. There are three modes:
All Products
- The offer automatically applies to all current and future products in your store.
Specific Collections
- Choose one or more collections.
- Manual collections update automatically.
- Automated collections require you to click "Sync Collection" manually after their contents change.
Specific Products
- Choose individual products.
- You can also target specific variants within each product.
For the detail and the automated-collection gotcha, see Applying subscriptions to specific products and collections.
Setting the default option
The default is the choice that is already selected when the widget loads on the product page. If you want shoppers to land on Subscribe & Save rather than on the one-time purchase, or on your three-pack rather than the single, this is the setting to change.
How to set it
- Go to Super Subscriptions > Offers and open the offer.
- Click Make default on the row you want pre-selected. This works the same way for a subscription bar, a bundle bar, and the one-time purchase row.
- Click Save.
One default at a time
Subscription bars, bundle bars, and the one-time purchase row all compete for the same slot, so making one the default clears whichever was the default before. The customer can still switch to any other choice.
The exception is a Bundle + Subscription offer, where the two sides are independent: the bundle bar default decides which pack the shopper starts on, and the subscription bar default decides whether that pack starts as a subscription or as a one-time purchase. Set both if you want, for example, "3-pack, monthly" pre-selected.
Common setups
- Subscribe & Save pre-selected: make your best subscription bar the default. This is the usual choice for consumables and refills.
- A bundle tier pre-selected: make the three-pack or the best-value box the default, and pair it with a Most popular badge.
- One-time purchase pre-selected: the standard behaviour on most themes, and what you set back if you have been testing a subscription-first layout.
Things worth knowing
- Order and default are separate. Dragging bars changes the order they are listed in; it does not change which one is pre-selected. A default bar can sit anywhere in the list, though putting it first usually reads better.
- Pick a default every shopper can see. A bar restricted under Eligible Customers is hidden from logged-out visitors, and a subscription bar with Restrict to specific bundle bars is hidden while other bundle bars are selected. A default that is hidden cannot be pre-selected, so the widget falls back to another choice. Make your default an unrestricted bar unless you specifically want that behaviour.
- Each offer carries its own default. If a product is covered by more than one offer, each one pre-selects its own choice within its own bars.
- Existing subscribers are unaffected. Changing the default only changes what new shoppers see first; live contracts keep the terms they were bought on.
- Check it on the storefront. The widget preview in the editor shows the offer you are editing, so open a real product page in your online store to confirm the right choice is highlighted.
Widget preview
The offer editor shows a widget preview beside your bars.
- The preview shows the offer you are editing, even if a product is covered by more than one offer.
- On the live storefront, customers see every offer that targets that product.
- Widget colors or styles may differ from the live version, depending on your store's theme.
🧰 Customize your widget
Change how the widget looks and behaves from Super Subscriptions > Design. See the Widget Editor guide →
🌍 You can also translate widget text via the Translations guide →
Publishing
An offer is a Draft until you publish it, and only published offers appear on your storefront.
What is a subscription bar?
A subscription bar is one recurring purchase choice a customer can pick on your product page: a delivery frequency, a discount, and the terms that come with it. For example, a single offer might show both a "Monthly delivery, 10% off" bar and a "Quarterly delivery, 15% off" bar.
When a customer chooses a bar and completes checkout, a subscription contract is created that inherits the details of that bar. The contract governs billing, fulfillment, and how long the subscription will last.
The offer around your bars carries the subscription name, which is the group name customers see for the whole set, plus the products the offer applies to. Bundle bars sit in the same offer and are covered in Bundle types.
Before your bars show up on the storefront, check that:
- The offer targets the product. Bars only appear on products the offer targets.
- The subscription widget is enabled in your online store theme.
- The offer is published, not left as a draft.
Creating a subscription bar
Click Add a subscription bar in the offer editor. Each bar contains the following settings:
1. Name and Description
The name is shown to customers (e.g. "Monthly delivery"). The description adds extra context, such as "Receive a delivery every month. Cancel anytime."
2. Billing Mode
Choose between:
- Pay per order: customers are charged before each shipment.
- Prepaid: customers are charged once for multiple future deliveries. (See the Prepaid section for details.)
3. Delivery Frequency
Define how often the customer is charged and fulfilled. (e.g., every 1 month or every 2 weeks.)
Billing Mode: Pay Per Order vs Prepaid
Subscription bars support two billing modes:
Pay Per Order (default)
Customers are charged before every delivery. This is the most common and flexible mode.
Prepaid
Customers are charged once for multiple future deliveries. You'll see an extra field:
- Number of orders per payment: how many shipments the customer pays for up front.
Example: If frequency is 1 month and number of orders is 3, the customer pays once every 3 months and receives a monthly delivery.
Prepaid subscriptions also support a One-off option, which expires after a single prepaid cycle. This is ideal for gift subscriptions, where the buyer pays once and the recipient gets a fixed number of deliveries.
Discounts
You can apply a percentage- or fixed-amount discount to each subscription bar. This discount is visible in the storefront and reflected in all related contracts.
Available discount types:
- No discount
- Percentage off
- Amount off
- Fixed amount: specify the exact new price for the subscription products
Example:
10% off for subscribing monthly, or $5 off for every delivery.
Contract Duration
Control how long the subscription lasts by setting a minimum or maximum number of renewals.
- Minimum number of renewals: prevent customers from being able to cancel through the customer portal until this number of renewals has been fulfilled.
- Maximum number of renewals: automatically end the subscription after this many orders.
Subscription Renewal Dates
You can schedule subscriptions to renew on specific days:
Available options change depending on delivery frequency:
- Weekly: Choose day of the week (e.g., Monday)
- Monthly: Choose day of the month (e.g., 15th)
- **Yearly: **Choose day and month of the year (e.g. 15 September)
Initial orders are fulfilled immediately
If checked, the first order is set to unfulfilled right after checkout, just like any regular order. If unchecked, the first order is set to scheduled and will automatically be set to unfulfilled at the next billing cycle.
If this setting is checked, you'll also see:
Cutoff window (days before renewal)
Any orders placed within this window before a renewal date are pushed to the next billing cycle.
How should the first order be processed if it falls within the cutoff period?
- Schedule first order for the next billing cycle
- Fulfill first order immediately and schedule second order for the following billing cycle
Example Scenarios
These examples show how different settings affect when the first order is fulfilled and how the billing schedule is established.
Example 1
- Renew subscription on specific dates: 15th day of the month
- Initial orders are fulfilled immediately: Disabled
A: Customer buys on 1 July
The first order is set to scheduled.
On 15 July, the order is automatically set to unfulfilled (ready for processing).
The next order is scheduled for 15 August.
B: Customer buys on 16th July
The first order is set to scheduled.
On 15 August, the order is automatically set to unfulfilled (ready for processing).
The next order is scheduled for 15 September.
Example 2
- Renew subscription on specific dates: 15th day of the month
- Initial orders are fulfilled immediately: Enabled
- Cutoff window: 0
A: Customer buys on 1 July
The first order is set to unfulfilled immediately.
The next order is scheduled for 15 July.
B: Customer buys on 15 July
The first order is set to unfulfilled immediately.
The next order is scheduled for 15 August.
C: Customer buys on 16 July
The first order is set to unfulfilled immediately.
The next order is scheduled for 15 August.
Example 3
- Renew subscription on specific dates: 15th day of the month
- Initial orders are fulfilled immediately: Enabled
- Cutoff window: 15
- How should the first order be processed if it falls within the cutoff period?: Schedule first order for the next billing cycle
A: Customer buys on 1 July
The first order is set to scheduled.
On 15 July, the order is automatically set to unfulfilled (ready for processing).
The next order is scheduled for 15 August.
B: Customer buys on 16 July
The first order is set to unfulfilled immediately.
The next order is scheduled for 15 August.
Example 4
- Renew subscription on specific dates: 15th day of the month
- Initial orders are fulfilled immediately: Enabled
- Cutoff window: 15
- How should the first order be processed if it falls within the cutoff period?: Fulfill first order immediately and schedule second order for the following billing cycle
A: Customer buys on 1 July
The first order is set to unfulfilled immediately.
The next order is scheduled for 15 August.
B: Customer buys on 16 July
The first order is set to unfulfilled immediately.
The second order is scheduled for 15 August.
Example 5
- Renew subscription on specific dates: 15th day of the month
- Initial orders are fulfilled immediately: Enabled
- Cutoff window: 31
- How should the first order be processed if it falls within the cutoff period?: Fulfill first order immediately and schedule second order for the following billing cycle
A: Customer buys on 1 July
The first order is set to unfulfilled immediately.
The next order is scheduled for 15 August.
B: Customer buys on 16 July
The first order is set to unfulfilled immediately.
The second order is scheduled for 15 September.
Fixed quantity bundle
Sell subscriptions in set pack sizes (e.g., packs of 3). Great for volume discounts and larger orders.
- Sell subscription in fixed quantities: enable or disable the bulk quantity rule for this subscription bar
- Quantity: set the quantity multiplier for the bundle (must be a whole number of 2 or more). The default is 2.
Starter product, then refills
Some products are bought once and refilled forever: a kit with the bottle, a machine with its pods, a starter pack with its pouches. Switch to a refill after the first order sells that as a single subscription. The customer buys the starter product on the product page, and from the second order on the subscription delivers and charges for the refill instead.
Set it up on the subscription bar, under advanced settings:
- Turn on Switch to a refill after the first order.
- Choose the refill product, and its variant if it has more than one.
- Set the price from the second order. This is what each unit of the refill costs, every order after the first. It is the amount charged, not a discount, so it does not stack with the bar's own discount.
What the customer sees:
- On the product page they buy the starter product at its usual subscription price, discount included.
- At checkout Shopify shows both prices, the amount due today and the amount each renewal will be, so the change is agreed before they pay.
- Their first order ships the starter product.
- From the moment that order is placed, their subscription (in the customer portal, in your admin, and in subscription emails) shows the refill product at the refill price. Every renewal bills and ships the refill.
If you want the refill named on the product page itself, next to the subscription bar, that is a theme customization rather than a setting. Contact support and we can look at your theme.
Eligible Customers
Restrict who can buy this bar with flexible account rules.
Enable: Only logged-in customers can purchase this subscription bar
Once enabled, select one of the following:
- All logged-in customers
- Customers that have at least one of these tags
- Customers that do NOT have any of these tags
Use this to limit access to specific segments, such as members, wholesale buyers, or VIPs.
Advanced bar settings
Each subscription bar has an advanced settings disclosure holding the rest of its settings. The disclosure stays open as you move between bars, so you can compare the same setting across several bars.
Retention and rewards
- Loyalty program: attach a loyalty program so subscribers on this bar automatically earn rewards as they stay subscribed.
- Retention flows: attach a cancellation flow and a pause flow, so customers on this bar see your reasons and counter-offers before they leave.
What the subscription delivers
- Switch to a refill after the first order: sell a starter product once, then keep delivering its refill at its own price. Covered above under Starter product, then refills.
Limits
- Limit active subscriptions: cap how many active subscriptions this bar can have. Set a max per bar, a max per product, or both. Useful for limited-run boxes or capacity-constrained services.
- Sell in fixed quantities: covered above under Fixed quantity bundle.
- Minimum commitment and Automatic expiry: covered above under Contract Duration.
Where the bar appears
- Bundle products only: only show this bar on bundle products.
- Bundle deal only: only surface this bar inside a bundle bar, so it never appears as a standalone choice.
- Restrict to specific bundle bars: only offer this bar on the bundle bars you tick, so you can keep your best subscription discount for the three-pack, say. Leave it off and the bar is offered on every bundle bar. As the customer switches between bundle bars, the widget hides the subscription bars that bundle does not offer. This appears only when the offer has bundle bars to choose between.
Storefront copy
- Bar benefits: list the perks shown with this bar in the widget, one per line, for example "Free shipping on every order" or "Cancel anytime". Benefits are translatable, see Translations.
The one-time purchase row
Alongside your subscription bars, the offer carries the one-time purchase row. It is Shopify's native one-time purchase rather than a subscription bar, so it has its own settings:
- Show or hide it in the widget.
- Position it at the top or the bottom of the bars.
- Make it the default selection with Make default, exactly as you would on a bar. See Setting the default option.
- Add a description and up to three benefit lines shown underneath it.
FAQs and Troubleshooting
Q: How do I make the subscription option selected by default instead of one-time purchase?
Open the offer, click Make default on the subscription bar you want, and save. The button is on the bar itself. See Setting the default option.
Q: How do I pre-select a particular bundle, like the three-pack?
The same way: open the offer, click Make default on that bundle bar, and save. See Setting the default option.
Q: Can two bars be the default at the same time?
No. One choice per offer is pre-selected, so setting a new default clears the old one. On a Bundle + Subscription offer, the bundle bar default and the subscription bar default are separate choices and can both be set.
Q: I set a default but the storefront still opens on something else.
The default has to be visible to that shopper. Check Eligible Customers on the bar, and Restrict to specific bundle bars if the offer has bundle bars, then re-save the offer and reload the product page.
Q: Can I have more than one offer on a product?
Yes. A product can be covered by several offers, and the storefront widget lets the customer choose.
Q: What happens if I edit an offer later?
Existing subscribers stay on the terms they bought. Contracts store their own copy of the terms, so editing an offer only affects new purchases.
Q: Can I offer both one-time and subscription purchases?
Yes. The one-time purchase row sits alongside your subscription bars and can be shown, hidden, repositioned, or made the default.
Q: Can I temporarily stop offering something?
There is no pause toggle. Remove the associated products from the offer while you are not selling it, then add them back later.
Q: Can I sell a starter kit first and refills after that?
Yes. Turn on Switch to a refill after the first order on the subscription bar and pick the refill product and its price. See Starter product, then refills.
Q: Can I schedule subscription renewals to happen in specific months like September, December, March, and June?
No, this is not possible for multi-month or multi-week subscriptions. While you can choose the day of the renewal period (e.g. the 15th), you cannot set specific months or weeks for renewals. Yearly subscriptions, however, allow you to set a specific renewal day and month in the year (e.g. 15 September).
Q: My bars aren't showing on the storefront.
Check the three requirements above: the offer is published, it targets the product, and the app embed is enabled. Also check Eligible Customers on the bar, since restricting a bar to logged-in customers hides it from everyone else. If a bar is missing only while one bundle bar is selected, check Restrict to specific bundle bars on that subscription bar.
Tips and Best Practices
- Use descriptive bar names that reflect the benefit (e.g., "Quarterly Restock, Save 15%") so customers can compare at a glance.
- Make your best-value plan the default so shoppers land on it first, and pair it with a Most popular badge.
- Start with a simple monthly subscription bar, then expand as you learn what customers prefer.
- Keep related choices in one offer so the widget stays easy to scan.
- Prepaid bars are great for seasonal boxes or gifts.
- Use minimum durations to prevent early cancellations if needed.
Related Guides
- Bundle types: quantity breaks, Buy X Get Y, fixed bundles, and build-a-box
- A Beginner's Guide to Subscription Contracts
- Applying subscriptions to specific products and collections
- Requiring a minimum number of payments before cancellation
- Prepaid Subscriptions
- How to Enable the Subscription Widget in the Online Store
- How subscription discounts work
- How to remove the one-time purchase option for a product
- Widget Editor
Updated on: 08/09/2026
Thank you!